Coles and Woolworths called out over issue impacting millions: 'Don't understand'
The shopper has come up with an innovative solution to tackle a problem most households are facing. But could it work?
Millions of Aussie households are stacked with unwanted Coles and Woolies bags and one shopper has come up with a novel idea to tackle the growing problem. Sydneysider Troy Holmes said he had "hundreds” of bags piled up that he kept forgetting to take with him when doing a grocery shop.
In a video online showing a pile of reusable shopping bags, he said: “Now, I can’t be the only one that has like, dozens and dozens of these f***ing bags from Coles and Woolworths".
“What I don’t understand is, why can’t they have a spot where I can take all my bags that are usable and just leave them at Coles and Woolies near the counter so that people don’t buy bags, they just reuse the reusable bags.
He said he has "hundreds of bags" and usually forgets them at home. "I feel bad recycling them because you can f***king use them ... it’s annoying. I want a solution,” Holmes said.
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Will the innovative Coles and Woolworths bag idea work?
Leading retail expert, Professor Gary Mortimer, from the Queensland University of Technology, told Yahoo News Australia" “It’s a good idea in principal but there are significant challenges".
"The problem is, we always forget to bring our bags so we will also forget to donate them too," Mortimer said.
“There is also the contamination issue. You don’t want your fresh fruit and vegetables going into a bag that contained bleach and cleaning products.
“Also, how do supermarkets control it? The donation bins will eventually end up overflowing with bags so there's an aesthetics issue. It will look messy. People will not be donating their best quality bags, but those with holes in them.
“I don’t know how many bags are given away or purchased every week, but there are millions of bags sitting in pantries. It is a problem. I forget my bags in the back of the car, or I’ve left them at home.”
He said it had been several years since supermarkets phased out single use plastic bags in favour of paper and longer lasting multi-use polyethylene bags, which could be recycled in soft plastics bins.
In the comments on Holmes' post, some people suggested donating spare multi-use bags to op shops, and a spokesperson for Vinnies NSW said the charity accepts clean and undamaged reusable supermarket bags for packing in their warehouses.
Coles says paper bags have helped phase out plastic
A Coles spokesperson said the retailer was “always looking for ways to make recycling easier for our customers”, while paper bag take-up saw 230 million plastic bags removed from circulation in one year.
“While we don’t currently offer a reusable bag drop off option in-store, all our paper bags can be reused multiple times and are made from 100 per cent recycled paper that can be recycled conveniently in kerbside bins if no longer required,” they told Yahoo News.
“The most sustainable option is to bring your own reusable bag to the supermarket, but for those who forget to bring them or don’t have a bag with them when they shop, we continue to sell other 100 per cent recycled paper bags, as well as other reusable carry bag options.”
Keep bags in your car, set up a 'reminder' alert, says Woolworths
A Woolworths spokesperson said: “Our paper bags are designed to be reused again and again, and when customers are done with them, they can be easily recycled at home".
“While we know that eight in 10 of our customers bring their own reusable bags when they shop, we understand it’s easy to forget them from time to time when you’re on the run,” they told Yahoo News.
The spokesperson recommended keeping reusable bags in your vehicle and said there are signs in their car parks reminding customers to bring their own and an option in the Woolworths app to turn on a ‘bag reminder’ alert.
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